Defying the odds of being battered by tech behemoth Apple, Pandora claims to be holding its ground.

In fact, the Internet radio service managed to increase its market share after iTunes Radio was released in September, Michael Herring, Pandora's chief financial officer, said Monday at an investors conference in San Francisco.

Listeners tuned into Pandora for a total of 1.47 billion hours overall last month, up a notable 18 percent from a year ago, according to The Associated Press. What's more, users' listening hours grew 9 percent after iTunes Radio debuted, Herring said.

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Pandora is still the leader when it comes to Internet radio, with 72.7 million monthly active listeners. But its future growth has been nebulous in the face of iTunes Radio.

Apple recently said that iTunes Radio has garnered 20 million users listening in to a billion songs. And in the service's first five days, it counted more than 11 million unique listeners.

Herring's pronouncement, however, has been backed up by some analysts thus far. A Canaccord survey found that iTunes Radio's impact on Pandora has been minimal, revealing that 92 percent of respondents who had tried Apple's service still use Pandora. And a B. Riley analyst said that iTunes Radio users spend 75 percent less time on the service than listeners of Pandora.

About the author

Desiree Everts DeNunzio is a freelance editor and writer. She's dabbled in digital media and technology for the past decade, including stints at CNET News and Wired magazine. When she's not fiddling with various gadgets, she spends her time running after chickens and her own brood.
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